Linux PHP to Dynamics GP Integration Scenarios and Options

Aug 16
07:24

2010

Andrew Karasev

Andrew Karasev

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Since the time, when Great Plains Software Dynamics Corporate ERP and MRP application was acquired by Microsoft, newly formed Microsoft Business Solutions (initially Microsoft Great Plains Business Solutions) turned to the natural route of driving out non-Microsoft OS and DB platforms.

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Initially Great Plains Dexterity was intended as the Operating System,Linux PHP to Dynamics GP Integration Scenarios and Options Articles DB platform and computer graphical interface realization independence vehicle.  GP Dexterity was introduced in late 1980th and earlier 1990th, when Linux was no yet known or at least something popular (we do recognize that Unix in various blends is sort of prototype for Linux and Unix is a way more ancient, comparing to Microsoft Windows or DOS).  Dexterity is in essence the shell coded in C programming language, which was believed to be the same on all the computing platforms: DOS, Windows, Unix, Macintosh and others.  Since the acquisition by Microsoft Dexterity was transformed to something that is more dependent on Microsoft Windows and MS SQL Server DB platforms.  But, you can still deploy integration between Linux/PHP application and Microsoft Dynamics GP, let’s review the details:
1. Where Dynamics GP and PHP/Linux could cross over?  Well. Probably in the applications, where you are deploying MySQL (especially popular on the international ERP development market, where your corporation could have subsidiary), as well as in Linux Internet Hosting Servers, where you may deploy such ecommerce shopping cart platforms as Magento
2. XML, Text or Advanced ODBC data source in Dynamics GP Integration Manager.  This is probably the first tool to review in analyzing your Linux MySQL integration possibilities.  All three formats: Text file (it is difficult to characterize it as “format”, as text is ancient archaic text), XML (some abstraction level to make text file look and behave as database, which is supposed to be and probably is computer operating system immune), ODBC is the construction to be conventionally compatible across multiple platforms.  We have case study and experience where IM was deployed in Quasi real time integration mode with Linux/PHP based ecommerce custom shopping cart, where ecommerce transactions were exported into text file and imported into Dynamics GP Sales Order Processing module every twenty minutes via Windows macro application (calling Integration Manager with parameters)
3. Dynamics GP eConnect.  This SDK allows you to expose Great Plains Objects in Microsoft Visual Studio C# or VB.Net projects.  The power of MS Visual Studio opens unlimited horizons to do cross platform data query and joining, including Oracle, DBII, MySQL, Pervasive SQL Server, Ctree.  Please, note that eConnect, being mid-tier level Software Development Kit requires you to do programming in that tier.  Please, also be aware – if you are on older version of Great Plains Dynamics, such as 7.5, 7.0, 6.0 and earlier, eConnect might be not really the option to consider, as it was introduced for Dynamics GP 7.0 and in our opinion reached the maturity with version 9.0
4. Magento eCommerce Shopping Cart Platform.  Alba Spectrum carries the Dynamics GP ecommerce add-ons, where Magento is one of the options to choose in ecommerce deployment wizard drop down list
5. To request further help, please call us 1-866-528-0577, 1-630-961-5918, in Michigan 1-269-605-0330 or email us help@albaspectrum.com    We are available to serve you USA, Canada nationwide, and internationally.  Local service in Chicago, Southern California, Western Michigan, Houston, TX